Entries tagged with: Pentagram

Doom metal pioneers Pentagram are still going strong and are set to follow 2011's Last Rites with a new album, Curious Volume, on August 28 via Peaceville Records. The album includes new singles "Walk Alone" and "Misunderstood," which are both more driving than the doomy sounds the band helped create. Listen (via Blabbermouth), and check out the artwork and tracklist, below.

The band is also promising a tours of North America this year and next, but those are still TBA.

Al Cisnero (Sleep) and Emil Amos' (Grails, Holy Sons) band OM have a few dates coming up this year. They were part of today's initial NXNE lineup announcement, and also playing Santa Ana's Psycho California Festival (May 15-17) with Sleep, Pentagram (performing First Daze Here), Cult of Luna, Earth, Kylesa, Russian Circles, Eyehategod, Indian, Pallbearer, Old Man Gloom, Cave In, Tombs and more. Tickets for that fest are on sale, full lineup below.

RIght after NXNE, they'll stop in NYC for an Invisible Oranges-presented show at Saint Vitus on June 21. Other bands TBA, but tickets are on sale now.

Full tour schedule, a video, and the Psycho California lineup, below...

The 2015 edition of Toronto's NXNE Festival happens June 17 - 21 at venues all over the Ontario capital. The initial lineup has just been announced and includes Action Bronson, The New Pornographers, Angel Olsen, Zola Jesus, Om, Rae Sremmurd, Deafheaven, Best Coast, Blonde Redhead, Iceage, Real Estate, Lower Dens, A Place To Bury Strangers, Pentagram, White Lung and more. You can check out the full list of initial NXNE showcasing artists below...

Doom legends Pentagram brought their tour with Bang and Kings Destroy to NYC last Saturday (11/1), where they played at Gramercy Theatre. Making this one doubly cool, it was one of two dates on the tour where they were joined by flute-bearing doomers Blood Ceremony.

Pentagram played, as they tend to, a set that focuses heavily on their classic material. They also broke out their cover of Nina Simone's oft-covered "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood." The other bands on the bill are well-matched to Pentagram's classic angle on doom. Bang are every bit as classic as Pentagram, and their Thin Lizzy/Black Sabbath-ish hard rock is a good counterpoint to the dramatic dooming of Pentagram. Witchy Torontonians Blood Ceremony are excellent modern torchbearers of the sound, and Kings Destroy brought an otherwise absent element of filth to the proceedings. Pictures of all the bands are in this post.

Most of the tour was with Radio Moscow, who sat out the Gramercy date but will be in NYC on Tuesday (11/4) to play Saint Vitus (tickets). Kings Destroy will also hit Vitus soon as part of YOB's two-night run. They play on night 1 (12/13), also with Tombs, which is a great triple bill (tickets).

More pictures from Gramercy, plus a few videos and Pentagram's setlist, below...

As discussed, Iowa psychedelic band Radio Moscow are going on a tour with doom-metal institution Pentagram, though they're not on the NYC stop which happens November 1 at Gramercy Theatre with Blood Ceremony, Bang and Kings Destroy (tickets). Instead, Radio Moscow will be in California that day for Day of the Shred with Red Fang, Weedeater, Windhand, Bongripper, ASG, Danava and more; but they've since added their own NYC show happening right after the Pentagram tour.

The riffers will team up with Black Wail and more TBA for a NYC gig on November 4 at Saint Vitus. Tickets for that show are on sale now. Updated dates are listed below.

Radio Moscow's newest album, Magical Dirt, came out earlier this year. Check out a stream of its track, "Death of a Queen," with the list of tour dates, below...

Pentagram, America's 40-plus-year-old doom institution, are heading back out on the road in October. The enduring dazers, now with guitar wiz Victor Griffin back in the fold, will be supported by Radio Moscow, Bang, and Kings Destroy. The tour will pass through places like Chicago, Cleveland, and Philadelphia, with possibly more dates to be announced in the near future. On November 1, they'll hit NYC's Gramercy Theatre with additional support from Blood Ceremony. Tickets will be surely be posted soon. The full list of dates appears below.

Fronted by the indefatigable and gonzo Bobby Liebling, star of the Last Days Here documentary, Pentagram have found themselves as elder statesmen in the American metal scene. Their last album, Last Rites, was released in 2011. As for their tourmates, hard-rockers Bang -- best known to relic collectors for their '71 self-titled album -- reformed this year to play a few US dates. Psych rockers Radio Moscow released their fourth album, Magical Dirt, back in June. Brooklyn stoner metallers Kings Destroy have found themselves on a number of bills, including earlier this month with Blackfinger and the upcoming Black Cobra and Lo-Pan show at Saint Vitus on September 18. And Canadian occult doomers Blood Ceremony cut the single Let It Come Down / Loving You in April.

All of the dates along with streams from the bands and the trailer for the Last Days Here documentary appear below.

A Place to Bury Strangers are putting the finishing touches on their fourth album which should be out late summer / early fall 2014. If you'd like to hear the album before that, the band are going to be testing out new songs from the LP at Brooklyn's The Wick on May 15. Spires (who open for The Horrors tonight) and APTBS' DbA buddies Grooms are opening. Tickets are on sale now. Show flyer below.

Before that, A Place to Bury Strangers will play the kickoff party for the Psycho de Mayo Festival which happens at Santa Ana, CA's The Observatory Constellation Room on May 10 with Gnod and Cold Showers. They'll then be DJs at the actual Psycho de Mayo Fest which also happens at the Observatory (same locale as Burgerama III) on May 11 and features Pentagram, Suuns, Saint Vitus, Prince Rama, Dead Moon and more. Full lineup and Psycho de Mayo flyer below...

The time has come for the Rocks Off Film Festival at the Kraine Theater in NYC with films about Charles Bradley, the Cockney Rejects, Drivin N Cryin, Slade, Pentagram, Jason Becker and more. Check the schedule.

Rocks Off is spreading its wings beyond the high seas and live shows, and into the film world by announcing the "only film fest in the world focused on what we all know and love, rock n' roll music!" The Rocks Off Film Festival happens July 12 - 14 at "the deliciously derelict" Kraine Theatre in the East Village. Amongst the screenings are films like Pentagram doc, Last Days Here, East End Babylon (about punks Cockney Rejects), Charles Bradley: Soul of America, and many others.

When we last saw Pentagram, the doom metal legends were headlining the much much larger Warsaw as part of Power of the Riff. Now the band will get small.... really small... with a show at Saint Vitus on April 16 for a one-off US date. Tickets are on sale.

All tour dates -- mostly in the EU -- are listed below. The Vitus appearance is one of only two US dates scheduled for the band, with the other being Maryland Deathfest 2013.

Saturday built upward from Alpha & Omega and Xibalba, young hardcore bands from California; the crowd endured Hoax, from western Massachusetts, a band with only a couple of EPs, whose volatile singer came down from the stage to the floor, inviting physical aggression and getting it. And the lineup worked toward the clomping meat-and-potatoes, early-'80s hardcore of Negative Approach -- established in Detroit 1981, reformed in 2006 -- and Agnostic Front, established in 1980, reformed in 1997, from New York and don't you forget it.

Agnostic Front's set was the hometown party: beefy guys from the old days at CBGB came out to support the band as it played uniformly streamlined versions of songs from the ratty old records "United Blood," "Victim in Pain" and "Cause for Alarm," responding to calls for circular mosh pits, pumping their fists to the generalized anti-authority chants: "We gotta stick together/and fight 'em all now!" And then many of them cleared out, leaving a sparser crowd for Pentagram, the early doom-metal band from Virginia whose prematurely ancient singer, Bobby Liebling, persists with effort. -[NY Times]

I'm proud to announce that in addition to the special Agnostic Front set at Power of The Riff (all of Victim in Pain/United Blood), Pentagram will perform their classic debut, Relentless, from front to back and for the first time since the 80s! In addition to AF, the doom gods will also be joined by Negative Approach, the newly addedHoax, Xibalba, Alpha & Omega and Power Trip for the first night at Warsaw (9/1). Tickets are still available for 9/1 and 9/2 separately (with a free screened poster) or for a two-day passes with a Southern Lord vinyl pack.

The life and times of Bobby Liebling is examined in Last Days Here, the documentary about the legendary Pentagram frontman. It's a great film and recommended even if you have no interest in metal. After a theatrical run earlier this year, the doc is out now on DVD and you can test the waters by streaming the film in its entirety for free HERE.

As mentioned before, Pentagram will play NYC at The Power of The Riff East, which goes down on September 1st and 2nd at Warsaw. Tickets are available for both Saturday (when Pentagram plays) and Sunday (when sunn o))) plays).

Maryland Deathfest have announced their first batch of bands for their 2013 edition, including a veritable buttload of exclusive appearances. Among those scheduled to appear exclusively at the eleventh edition of the fest are Venom, Carcass, a Righteous Pigs reunion, Antaeus (who played Rites of Darkness), Convulse, Aosoth, !Tooh!, Ahumado Granujo, and Ingrowing.

In related news, MDF 2011 alums and over-the-top death metal purists Gravehill give fuck-zero about current trends, they just want to rip, drink frothy cold ones and scare the ever-living shit out of you. The California-based band will head to the East Coast this fall to play Saint Vitus on October 26th with Hour of 13, Master's Eve and Mutant Supremacy. Tickets are on sale. So far, no details on an actual tour yet, but we'll keep our eyes peeled (pardon the pun).

Arguably the centerpiece of the entire Maryland Deathfest lineup was the return of the UK doom juggernaut Electric Wizard (pictures HERE), so suffice it to say that a large portion of the Sunday (on 5/28) roster leaned in that direction. Doom legends Saint Vitus headlined the second stage that night, while the bluesy Church of Misery, glacially-paced Cough, zen-like Yob and eclectic Rwake all represented for the genre.

The rest of the day fell all over the map, from speedy straight-edge to grind, black metal to crust, and death metal of the technical and primitive sorts. The odd-experimentalism of Bethlehem caught my ear the most, but sets from the always entertaining Suffocation, Disma, Pentagram (black/thrash from Chile), Ulcerate, Mortuary Drape and Agents of Abhorrence were similarly fun. I unfortunately arrived too late to catch Backslider or Coke Bust. Demonical's old school Swedish death metal sounded excellent but didn't put on much of a live show and my flirtation with Morgoth was interrupted in favor of Rwake's full set.

More pictures from the final day at Maryland Deathfest is below. If you missed it, check out pictures from day 1 HERE (and Rorschach HERE), day 2 HERE and day 3 HERE.

Pentagram headlined Le Poisson Rouge on Sunday night (8/21) with Jeff The Brotherhood, Valient Thorr and local addition ELKS, just a few days after playing dates on the West Coast as part of Power Of The Riff (check out the LA and San Fran pics). The LPR show is part of a string of dates that continue on 8/26 in Pittsburgh at Mr Small's before concluding at Sonar in Baltimore on 8/27. Pictures from the NYC show are in this post.

Cy Barkley is the man to know in Nashville, TN. Fronting both Cy Barkley and the Way Outsiders and the hardcore punk band Slammers with Jamin Orrall from Jeff the Brotherhood, Mimi Galbriez from Heavy Cream, and Josh Shearon from Cannomen and Cy's current band the Way Outsiders, he's like the Kevin Bacon of the underground scene in Nashville--it probably only takes three moves to get to him. But then, it is a small town and a smaller scene, so it probably only takes six moves at most to get to anyone. Cy also lives with Nashville's Dead founder Ben Todd and throws a few shows a month attheir south side space Glenn Danzig's House, recently hosting touring acts like Personal and the Pizzas, in addition to frequenting local favorites like Useless Eaters, Natural Child, and D. Watusi.

"Pentagram was very solid last night. Too bad the crowd was a bunch of hipsters with no respect." -graveyarns

"A lot of dudes with a Hipster Metal Parking Lot look at the Pentagram show. Might need to trip some of them." -Mr. Dave Hill

Pentagram @ Mezzanine (by Taylor Keahey)

"The headliners for the Power of the Riff fest were none other than doom legends Pentagram. I wasn't quite sure what to expect from them as Victor Griffin hasn't been in the band for a long long time and they've had a revolving door of musicians for quite some time now. Also, I wasn't very into their latest comeback album Last Rites, so I was a tad skeptical I would enjoy their performance. The one thing I did know was that I was more than ready for Victor to lay down some serious doom riffage. They opened with new song Treat Me Right off their latest and right away sounded fantastic. Bobby Liebling's voice has certainly held up over the years and he was belting out classics like Relentless, Forever My Queen and All Your Sins like they were going out of style. Victor's evil riffs rained down upon the crowd who eagerly lapped them up and were thirsting for more after each song. For the encore they came out with The Ghoul before finishing with two more before letting the audience catch their breath. As for my skepticism, it was smashed to bits and a serious appreciation for what they've meant to doom and metal in general was cemented in me with their performance. I hope Pentagram continues on down the dark path for a while more...." [ILSYDHT]

The Power of The Riff "tour" has now come to a close after a pair of dates in Seattle at Neumo's on 8/18 and The Highline on 8/20. You saw pictures from the Los Angeles show and from Elbo Room in San Francisco. Now here is a set of pics from the third west coast date which took place at the Mezzanine in San Francisco on August 16th with Aeges, Baptists, Early Graves, Masakari, John Cobbett, Alpinist, Pelican, and Pentagram. They continue below.

Pentagramis now touring the East Coast with Jeff The Brotherhood and Valient Thorr. That tour hit Le Poisson Rouge last night with ELKS. Pictures from that NYC show are on the way. Meanwhile check out Power of the Riff below...

"The Power of The Riff" has completed three days of their five date West Coast tour, logging shows at Echo/Echoplex in Los Angeles on 8/13 (pics HERE), Elbo Room in San Francisco on 8/15, and last night (8/16) at Mezzanine in San Francisco.

Bands that played over the course of the three days include Pentagram, Winter, Noothgrush, Trap Them, Acephalix, Black Breath, Eyehategod, Pelican, All Pigs Must Die, Early Graves (with new vocalist John of The Funeral Pyre!), Seven Sisters of Sleep, Masakari and many more.

As mentioned (and here and here and here), BAMcinemaFest is underway at BAM in Brooklyn (it runs through June 26th), and there's a couple worthy music docs playing this week that you should check out. Tonight (6/22) they're screening Last Days Here, about Pentagram frontman Bobby Leibling's struggles to beat drug addiction and return to the stage. When the movie opens, 50-something Leibling is in bad shape, living in the "sub-basement" of his aging parent's house. But through the help of fan and indie metal label employee Sean Pelletier, there might be hope for Leibling yet.

If that sounds like standard rock doc type stuff, it is, and those who follow metal coverage on BV at all you probably know how everything turns out but it's not really the point. Last Days Here a moving portrait of recovery and, yes, love -- and you can't help but get a little choked up at the end.

I could've used a little more backstory on Pentagram (for that this SPIN article is pretty good at filling in the blanks), and could've done without the (sparingly used) reenactment footage, but the film works on its own terms. Filmmakers Don Argott and Demian Fenton will answer questions after tonight's screening.

Tomorrow night (6/22), BAMcinemaFest hosts The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye which is definitely NOT you're run-of-the-mill rock doc. Filmed over seven years on 16mm, the film follows former Throbbing Gristle/Psychic TV leader Genesis Breyer P-Orridge and his partner Lady Jaye through their "Pandrogyne" project, where they sought to become two parts of the same person through body modification surgery. It is crazy, and amazing, and a genuinely touching portrait of real love. You won't forget it.

Director Marie Losier and Genesis will be in attendance for a post-screening Q&A which should be pretty interesting and will then be followed by a performance from Thee Majesty, Genesis' current project.

As discussed, Pentagram will play a string of shows with JEFF The Brotherhood & Valient Thorr. That tour has now been announced and will include a NYC show at Le Poisson Rouge on August 21st. Ticketing info is forthcoming. All dates are listed below.

Another date on the Pentagram schedule goes down on August 13th at Echo Park in LA aka the 2011 Power Of The Riff festival. The current lineup also includes Winter, Pelican, Trap Them, Masakari, Alpinist, Acephalix, All Pigs Must Die, and more TBA. Unlike last year, the fest costs money this time. Tickets are on sale. Poster below.

Discover the best in recent independent cinema with BAMcinématek's annual festival, collecting the most dynamic and innovative new work from festivals in the US and around the world and bringing them to New York City audiences. Now in its third year, BAMcinemaFest 2011 is our biggest festival yet, screening 26 feature films, including 20 New York premieres and one world premiere, as well as 24 short films, an outdoor screening, parties, live music, a photo exhibition, and more.

The film festival will also feature a few other music-related films, including a documentary on Genesis P-Orridge entitled The Ballad of Genesis & Lady Jayeon June 23rd which will be followed by a free concert by Thee Majesty (which features Genesis). Singer-songwriter Goh Nakamura stars in the feature Surrogate Valentine which screens on June 23rd which will be followed by a concert at nearby Frankie's Lounge.

As previously mentioned, Gruff Rhys (Super Furry Animals) will be the focus of a film as well, as a screening of Seperado!on June 18th will chronicle his journey "from his native Cymru all the way to Patagonia to look for his long-lost Argentine uncle, the poncho-clad Welsh-Latin singer René Griffiths". Gruff Rhys returns to play NYC a few days before that, on June 15th at Mercury Lounge with Y Niwl and Brakes (Solo Acoustic). Tickets are still available.

Coachella isn't the only heavyweight festival going on this weekend... Roadburn 2011 is in full swing over in Holland. It kicked off on Thursday April 14th, and pictures from that first day in are in this post. They include Alcest, Godflesh (who played all of Streetcleaner), Soilent Green, Year of No Light, Winterfylleth, Pentagram, Wovenhand, Ghost (who are headed to the states soon), Circle, Wardruna, and more. They continue, with some videos too, below...

Woe will join We Are All Savages, Mutilation Rites, and Magrudergrind for a Brooklyn show at The Charleston at midnight on Friday night (2/18, or Saturday AM). The show, billed as the "Official Eyehategod Afterparty", features some overlap with the actual Eyehategod show (happening at Europa), as both Magrudergrind and Mutilation Rites are on-board to play both shows. Eyehategod will also be at SXSW this year, playing an official showcase at Scoot Inn on 3/19 with Pentagram, Naam, Cough, Ancient VVisdom, and Primitive Weapons.

Woe is currently working on new material, and will be sporting a fresh lineup at The Charleston following the departure of the Madden brothers. Woe posted this message:

"First and foremost, we are sad to say that Evan and Shane have left Woe. I think that not addressing it would be disrespectful but if they want this note removed, I will certainly do so. Nobody is going to go into detail about it so please respect everyone's privacy and don't ask. While I cannot and do not claim to speak for them, I have nothing but positive memories of the fantastic shows we played together to say nothing of the phenomenally-received recent album. They will continue with The Green Evening Requiem and recent Earache Records-signees Woods of Ypres (who were recently announced as a headliner for Heart of Winter Fest in Richmond, VA this coming February) so expect to hear a lot from them.

And we soldier on."

Meanwhile, Woods of Ypres are making their way to NYC as well, tagging Bowery Electric on March 16th with Gwynnbleidd. The band will reissue their fourth LP Woods IV: The Green Album via Earache on 3/22 and are preparing to release their final LP W5. More details on that are forthcoming, but for now checkout all tour dates and some video below.

It was the metal equivalent of the first day back at school on January 6th when Europa hosted the first killer show of the year featuring doom gods/recent Metal Blade signeesPentagram, the great-and-currently-working-on-a-new-recordHull, all-female Judas Priest cover band Judas Priestess (get it?) and Bezoar. Bursting at the seams, Europa was packed-solid with doom fanatics who were unashamed to start the pit by the time that Judas Priestess set it off. Killer show from all bands.

More pictures from Europa, including one of Pentagram's setlist, are below.